Even after many decades of business travel, I am amazed at the ability to have breakfast at home, have lunch many hundreds of miles distant and then supper with a client on the other side of the continent. Modern travel is simply amazing and easier and quicker than it has ever been previously. For me it never gets old. I am off to the Denver, Colorado area for a few days to visit with a new client and dream of the possibilities on their property through the coming years. It is exciting. As I made final arrangements for my trip yesterday and discussed our current and upcoming projects with Peter, his parting quip made me laugh. He told me he would see me again when I came home with at least a thousand dollars. The sentiment dated back to when he and Becke were very young and Janis & I first were first starting to make a livelihood being self-employed artists. As we built our fledgling business it was often a scary and precarious time with uncertain and wildly fluctuating income as often as not. Each time I left on a business trip Janis would give me a fond good-by with a kiss and a hug and that same joking but somewhat serious comment. ‘Hurry home as soon as you make a thousand dollars’. Most often that amount was what we desperately needed to make our commitments at the rapidly approaching end of the month. Thankfully, over the decades our financial security has improved immensely but that same underlying urgency to make my time on the road worthwhile never changes. As always, I’ll be working hard and having fun.
He's purple!
It is amazing how fast a little colour can change one of our creations - even if it is only the base coat. The dragon instantly came to life as Krysia added the paint. Next comes the first of the two blend coats and then a series of glazes. As good as he looks now we all can hardly wait to see him in full splendiferous colour along with the gigantic mushrooms that surround him! stay tuned…
Inside and out - pure magic!
Work continues on the Hazelnut Inn. From the outside things look quiet but inside talented tradesmen are working their magic. Electricians are busy pulling wires through conduits in the North Star suite. Once this work is done we will resume the theme work there to finish the suite. Underneath the North Star is the maintenance/support room which houses all of the technical components of the Inn. There the gas fitter is busy doing the final hookups. This room is also the centre of all of the plumbing for the structure. To carry out this complex task we hired the same fellow who installed a smaller, but similar system in our house ten years ago. This handles the domestic and hot water for heat. Sean is one of those craftsmen who takes great pride in his work. Everything is planned, square and neat, and the solder joints are perfect. This attention to detail gives us great confidence in how it will function for decades to come. The system is massive for a three-room hotel but should three guests each decide to fill their giant soaker tub at the same time there will be ample hot water. The same exquisite attention we are applying to every square inch of the Hazelnut Inn goes into the inner workings. Inside and out - pure magic!
